[Boomer]

How did all those adults miss the symbolism of that trench coat?

The public school where I taught considered implementing a dress code.

There were some parents who shouted it down, saying it interfered with their child's freedom of expression.

The admin gave up easily, did not want to rock the boat full of all those silly, clueless, suburban parents.

[Bucco]

Originally Posted by Nucky

Someone in a position of power up the food chain please take the bull by the horns and do something different. Just make progress. Don't talk about it too long do something. The entire population wants something to be done. These poor families.

The routine, the words, the lack of ever doing anything to even address this will continue is my bet.

This is not an easy problem to solve, but we keep hearing how smart, intelligent, all knowing every candidate is, you would think that maybe one of them would actually "show" us those attributes in action.

Just might help the country to stop attacking our own and pay attention to helping

[ColdNoMore]

Originally Posted by Bucco

The routine, the words, the lack of ever doing anything to even address this will continue is my bet.

This is not an easy problem to solve, but we keep hearing how smart, intelligent, all knowing every candidate is, you would think that maybe one of them would actually "show" us those attributes in action.

Just might help the country to stop attacking our own and pay attention to helping

I would love to think that something would happen, but my bet is that after a short period of lip-service outrage by certain elected officials, the real money will take over behind the scenes...and it will be buried & forgotten AGAIN!

[Bucco]

Originally Posted by ColdNoMore

I would love to think that something would happen, but my bet is that after a short period of lip-service outrage by certain elected officials, the real money will take over behind the scenes...and it will be buried & forgotten AGAIN!

THAT IS TRUE, plus add that nobody seems to want to do the "work" required when you get elected.

It is not supposed to be an "easy job".

The need to have party majorities is a testament to that fact. Listening, talking and compromise is gone. Our elected want to "pontificate"

[Bogie Shooter]

Originally Posted by Taltarzac725

They should try to get an international dialog within thousands of local communities between lawyers, librarians, physicians, psychiatrists, social workers, nurses, victims/survivors, victim-witness assistance providers, students, teachers, CEOs, movie directors, Hollywood studio execs, 2nd Amendment historians/scholars and many many others to address what can be done about curbing this kind of violence on a practical level.

And TOTVers can do this too. What is going on in the community you moved here from that will stop school violence? Curbing cyber and in person bullying is one step; as is more teaching about mental illness; gun control by parents, friends and/or other relatives; lawsuits against gun manufacturers and others; education about practical materials available for survivor/victims of crimes in libraries, law enforcement websites, apps and other resources. Just approach this problem from every conceivable angle and ignore party politics as much as possible. Strengthening community bonds is also critical. On a very local level.

I know quite well some of the grandparents of one of these very recent shootings. They never recover from this kind of loss.

Which countries are you suggesting should be included?

[tomwed]

High School guidance counselors are there to keep an eye on the children. The average caseload is 500 students to 1 counselor. The paperwork not the heart to heart talk takes up most of their time. I think we need more specialists who are skilled in sorting out the maladjusted and seeing how they could helped. Maybe a 24 hour HS hotline where an anonymous conversation with someone who knows their friend needs help can be developed. Maybe every student has to be a big brother and has to be a big sister until it becomes just part of being in school.

Some kids are attracted to terrorist websites just to belong to some group that is paying attention. I don't know what is being advertised on the internet that the kids are reading.

I have worked with kids that are bullied. You may think the bullied would take positive action and go after the bully like Tyson did when he got tougher. But I have seen more often then not the bullied individual is frequently much larger in their senior year and the payback takes place with the freshman. So the cycle repeats itself.

[My Post]

Other students saying the shooter was mercilessly bullied by peers and some faculty including coaches.
This, of course, doesn't make it OK but some people snap after a while.
What do we do about sad, alienated, bullied kids?

[ColdNoMore]

Originally Posted by tomwed

High School guidance counselors are there to keep an eye on the children. The average caseload is 500 students to 1 counselor. The paperwork not the heart to heart talk takes up most of their time. I think we need more specialists who are skilled in sorting out the maladjusted and seeing how they could helped. Maybe a 24 hour HS hotline where an anonymous conversation with someone who knows their friend needs help can be developed. Maybe every student has to be a big brother and has to be a big sister until it becomes just part of being in school.

Some kids are attracted to terrorist websites just to belong to some group that is paying attention. I don't know what is being advertised on the internet that the kids are reading.

I have worked with kids that are bullied. You may think the bullied would take positive action and go after the bully like Tyson did when he got tougher. But I have seen more often then not the bullied individual is frequently much larger in their senior year and the payback takes place with the freshman.

So the cycle repeats itself.

Yep.

[Taltarzac725]

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

Which countries are you suggesting should be included?

Some are already included and have been for a long time.

[Bucco]

Originally Posted by Bogie Shooter

Which countries are you suggesting should be included?

I do not necessarily support the idea, BUT WHY IN THE WORLD would any countries be EXcluded ?

Children are children....all over the world.

Killing anyone is killing....all over the world

And away we go...not putting words in your mouth, but who would you EXCLUDE and reasons (not opinions) for excluding them ?

[Rapscallion St Croix]

What follows came out of my brain. It is not a proven fact. It is what is called an opinion, to which I am entitled to have and to state.

These school shootings and other atrocities we suffer these days are by products of progress...of technological advances. If this kid had to read a newspaper or watch Cronkite or Huntley/Brinkley at a specific time of day to know about school shootings, he would not know about them at all and therefore would not be influenced to perform one himself.

[Carl in Tampa]

Originally Posted by Spikearoni

The high school where I served as vice principal had three buildings on one campus to which students would traverse for various classes throughout the day. Each multi-floored building had several entry/exit points with eight class periods daily. During lunch breaks, students were allowed to leave the cafeteria and go out to the central courtyard which eased the crowding in the lunchroom and decreased the occurrence of problematic behavioral issues. I'm pretty sure that other schools have a similar setup making your proposal quite difficult to enact.

Many high schools are configured as you describe. The long term answer will probably be to design future schools as monolithic structures that are more adaptable to high security measures; perhaps with a central open courtyard surrounded completely by the classroom and administration building.

The short term answer may be fencing off the entire school campus with alarm-sensitive wiring, closed circuit television monitors, and security patrols. Entire airfields, encompassing hundreds of acres are similarly protected.

[LittleDog]

It seems to me that in recent shootings the weapons were not secured by the parent. I think that if those parents were charged with an accessory to murder that maybe those parents with children and weapons in the house would think twice about securing their weapons.

John

[Bucco]

Originally Posted by Rapscallion St Croix

What follows came out of my brain. It is not a proven fact. It is what is called an opinion, to which I am entitled to have and to state.

These school shootings and other atrocities we suffer these days are by products of progress...of technological advances. If this kid had to read a newspaper or watch Cronkite or Huntley/Brinkley at a specific time of day to know about school shootings, he would not know about them at all and therefore would not be influenced to perform one himself.

That is a great OPINION, and one I offered a few months ago, not necessarily on a school shooting.

I do not think it is a "by product of progress". It appears to be restricted to the United States.

However, I agree the "outside influences" sowing dissent is an issue.

Warning....my posts on this were deleted.

For context, my posts were deleted relative to a subject or cause not yet displayed in this case, only hinted at.

[Carl in Tampa]

Originally Posted by LittleDog

It seems to me that in recent shootings the weapons were not secured by the parent. I think that if those parents were charged with an accessory to murder that maybe those parents with children and weapons in the house would think twice about securing their weapons.

John

When, and whether, young people can be entrusted with firearms is a complex issue.

In southern states where hunting is often a multi-generational family tradition, children may be involved in gun handling, gun safety, and shooting at an early age. During hunting season, guns are brought out, sighted in, cleaned, and prepared for the hunting trip. Guns may be all over the house.

Certainly, in hunting camp, guns are everywhere, although proper procedure demands that they not be loaded in camp.

In the face of this casual access to guns during a part of the year, it is often difficult for a parent to believe that during the rest of the year his children should be mistrusted about access to firearms.

In rural or semi-rural areas of the south it is commonplace for a rifle or shotgun to be behind a door or in a closet for ready access if it might be needed to protect livestock from a predator or the family from an intruder. It would be unthinkable to lock the gun in some manner that would inhibit its rapid deployment.

Florida law prohibits leaving a loaded firearm where a minor might gain access to it. It should be in a locked box or secured with a trigger lock. Locked boxes and trigger locks are relatively inexpensive items, and should be used.